Fifth form of light

The awarded Croatian designer of light and light fixtures with an international reputation was educated at the New York Fashion Institute of Technology, where he established his studio in 1990. In 1995 he returned to Croatia and has produced light projects in his House of Light laboratory in Pula since 2006. The user is at the centre of his projects and the quality of the experience and the atmosphere he creates are at the core of his activity. Light projects, realised in cooperation with similar professions and characterised by scenographic and site-specific approach to design, have become some of the crucial landmarks in domestic and foreign urban environments. Along with many other awards, in 2018 he was awarded with the prestigious IES award in New York for the light design of the Hendrix Bridge in Zagreb.

Oris: Maybe we could start the interview by discussing the beginning of your career – how did it all start?

Dean Skira: Most of my career could be narrowed down to deliberation on form. Light has form, and since architecture and everything that surrounds us is connected to form, then it may be said to be the beginning of my path. Whether it was destiny or luck that directed me to walk in the shadow, or if the light is my shadow, I still do not know for sure. I am also not sure if we can directly control our path; if things occur accidentally or they are destined to take place. Once, when I got the chance to deal with something related with architecture, which was light in my example, I simply decided to follow that path.